The next stop was Robert Island, full of seals (and penguins). The seals crawl onto the beaches to molt. Every year they must replace their fur and get out of the water to do it. Apparently it is really hot for them as they lay on the beach, so mainly they just lay there. By the way, there are 5 types of seals in the area we were in, Elephant, Weddell, Crabeater (they don't eat crabs), Leopard, and Fur. I learned the differences, waiting for my Antarctic biology degree to arrive in the mail.
The Elephant seals were really cool. The adults are huge, up to 4 tons, but they just lay there and look at you. They lay in groups and kind of bug each other when they move, so there is some grunting and general displeasure expressed by fake biting. They crawl like giant brown slugs. They don't breath like we do by regular inhaling and exhaling, they open their mouths like yawning, take a few deep breaths, then shut their mouths and noses for several minutes. This is normal since they live most of their lives underwater.
A Weddell seal. These are the seals that make the space invader sounds underwater (look it up).
Not to make the reader work too hard... I googled. I think he means the mystery ship sound - shelly.
Elephant seals. Their eyes are constantly tearing to remove salt from their bodies.
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